Tongue cleaner that has UV Light to kill bacteria

ABSTRACT

A tongue cleaner that can be used by an operator or an individual that is capable of removing debris and killing bacteria from the tongue. The improvement comprises of a UV light source located on the tongue cleaner scraper head that would let UV light shine directly onto the tongue, as it is stroked against the tongue, it would kill the germs and bacteria.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention would help maintain good oral hygiene by cleaning thesurface of your tongue and also killing bacteria and germs that causesbad breath. Particularly, this invention relates to a tongue scraperthat safely removes plaque, kills bacteria and debris buildup fromtongue surface, which is much better than just brushing or scraping thetongue.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

UV light is an effective way to kill germs and bacteria. The majorreason for bad breath is plaque, bacteria and debris in our mouths.

Toothbrushes and tongue scrapers help remove plaque and debris from thetongue but do a poor job in killing the bacteria that resides on yourtongue. Conventional toothbrushes with bristles are often uncomfortableto use on the tongue and hence many people don't use it to clean theirtongue. Therefore, there is an unmet need that toothbrushes and tonguescrapers need to overcome in order to enhance oral hygiene.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention centers around a unique design of a tongue scraper thatcan deliver UV light, and at the same time allows for optimum removal ofplaque and debris from the tongue.

The present implementation includes a head that forms the scraper edge,that also directs the UV light to the surface of the tongue and a handlethat houses the power source for the UV-Light. The UV Light source wouldtypically be a UV LED that would directly be mounted inside the head orin the handle. When mounted in the handle the head would use built inlight pipes (refraction properties) to direct the UV light to thetongue. The handle would house the batteries, or even chargeablebatteries that could be charged wireless using induction charging orwith the use of solar cells.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1: Is a side view of the tongue cleaner in accordance with and/oruse with the present invention.

FIG. 2: Is a cross sectional view from the bottom showing all the majorcomponents of the design. The handle has the battery, the electricalconduits, the control button and optional electronics. This view alsoshows the bottom of the head showing the beveled scraper edge, the lightdiffuser/lens and the UV LED placed behind the light diffuser/lens.

FIG. 3: Shows the UV Light being part of the handle and that the handleand head as being two separate parts. In this case the head part has noelectrical components, it only has light pipes to guide the light to thedesired location. The handle and head connect together via a quick snapconnection that is keyed to ensure correct orientation of the head tothe handle.

FIG. 4: Is a view from the top. The UV light is not visible from thetop. The handle has the control button and also show an optional LCDdisplay.

REFERENCE NUMERALS IN DRAWINGS

-   -   10 Head part of cleaner    -   11 Beveled scraper edge    -   20 Handle part of scraper    -   21 Cross sectional view of handle from bottom    -   25 Control button to turn on/off UV light    -   26 Cross section view of control button from bottom    -   27 Quick connect plug    -   28 Quick connect receptacle    -   29 Key to align head and handle    -   30 UV Led mounted in head    -   31 UV Led mounted in handle    -   32 Built in electrical conduits to carry power    -   33 Batteries to power UV Light source    -   34 Optional electronics to control UV Light, charging the        batteries, Blue-tooth or Wi-Fi    -   35 Optional LCD display for status indicator    -   40 Light diffuser/lens to distribute UV Light evenly    -   41 Light pipes built inside head

DETAILS OF THE INVENTION

The tongue cleaner includes a head (10) that forms the scraper whichwill channel up the plaque and debris. In close proximity to thescraper's edge (11) is a parallel light diffuser/lens (40) that willshine UV Light onto the surface of the tongue, killing all the bacteriaand germs in its path.

The handle (20) and the head (10) are integrally formed, with the handle(20) designed to house the power for the UV Light. The handle would havethe batteries (33) and if chargeable batteries are used charging couldbe done via induction or solar cells hence eliminating the need forwires for charging. The handle (20) could also house a go button (25)that the user/operator would press to control the UV Light. Simplecontrols such as ON/OFF, intensity control, strobing and timer featurescould all be controlled using this button (25) and someelectronics/microcontroller (34) could also be housed inside the handleto provide Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, LCD and charging features.

As this tongue cleaner is stroked against one tongue, in a single strokeit would not only remove all the plaque and debris from the surface ofthe tongue, but at the same time it would kill the germs and bacteria inthe UV Light path.

Due to cost and other benefits one could also have the UV Light sourcehoused inside the handle (31). In this case the scraper head (10) woulduse clear and opaque plastic to direct the UV light to the tonguesurface. The scraper head would hence act as a light pipe (41) for theUV Light.

With the UV Light source (31) built inside the handle (20) the head (10)and the handle (20) would be two separate parts that would snap together(28), (29). The scraper head (10) could be made to be disposable, thiswould allow for dentists, oral hygienists and other individuals toquickly change and dispose of the used scraper head for a new device.Since the handle (20) part won't be disposed of it could be made to havesome optional features, such as wireless charging, an LCD (35) toprovide direct user feedback of UV light settings, battery level andusage. It could also have Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connectivity allowing fordata usage to be down loaded to a smart device.

1. A tongue cleaner that can be used by an operator or individual thatis capable removing debris and plaque, and is also capable of killingthe bacteria and germs on your tongue by using UV light. The tonguecleaner comprising of: A head (10) that has a light diffuser/lens and abeveled edge, which can be made from plastic, metal or rubber that formsthe scraper edge (11). A handle (20) that houses all the electricalconduits, the batteries (33), the control circuitry and optionalelectronics (34) that would power the UV Light source. The UV lightsource (30) can be mounted directly in the head (10) behind the lightdiffuser/lens (40) or can be mounted in the handle (20). When mounted inthe handle the head would use built in plastic light pipes to direct thelight to the desired position. The UV Light source can be from a UV LEDor any UV Lamp source that can be small enough to mount inside thehandle (20) or head (10).
 2. The tongue cleaner of claim 1, control ofthe UV Light is made possible by having a control button (25) built intothe handle to accommodate single handed operation of the tongue cleaner.The control button (25) would not only control the UV light being ON/OFFbut could also control the intensity of the light by selecting apre-programmed choice, these control features are also part of theclaim.
 3. The tongue cleaner of claim 1, use of light pipes (41) todirect UV light from the handle (20) to the head (10) and to have the UVlight shine directly to the surface of the tongue are also part of theclaim.
 4. The tongue cleaner of claim 1, having the handle (20) and head(10) being two separate devices that snap together and after use thehead being disposed and replaced with a clean new one are part of thisclaim.
 5. FIG. 1 shows an example of the tongue cleaner claim
 1. Otherpossible shapes for the head (10), scraper edge (11), the handle (20)and position of the UV Light sources that shine directly at the surfaceof the tongue are all part of this claim.